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DIRECTIVE No.13/1998/CT-TTg OF MARCH 26, 1998 ON ENHANCING THE DIRECTION AND ORGANIZATION OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE LABOR PROTECTION WORK IN NEW SITUATION

Over the recent years, thanks to the implementation of the Labor Code and the Ordinance on the State management over the fire prevention and fight, the labor protection, certain progress and achievements have been made in the fire and explosion prevention and fight, the working conditions have been constantly improved, thus contributing to the protection of laborers' health, ensuring the laborers' right to work under safe and hygienic conditions and limiting labor accidents, occupational diseases, fires and explosion.

Yet, some levels and branches, some employers and employees have failed to strictly observe the labor protection legislation. Violations of technical norms and standards on labor safety and hygiene, on fire and explosion prevention and fight are still prevalent, including some serious cases. The investment in improvement of working conditions and the application of measures to prevent and fight labor accidents, occupational diseases and fires and explosion in many enterprises have not been given due attention, particularly in private production and business establishments.

In order to raise the State management efficiency and enhance the role and responsibilities of all organizations and individuals in ensuring labor safety and hygiene, fire and explosion prevention and fight; to maintain and improve the working conditions and to protect the health and safety of the laborers, the Prime Minister hereby instructs the ministers, the heads of the concerned agencies, the presidents of the People's Committees of the provinces and cities directly under the Central Government to concentrate efforts on directing the performance of the following tasks:

1. The Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs shall, in coordination with the Ministry of Health:

- Continue to revise, improve and supplement the documents guiding the implementation of the labor protection legislation, especially the norms on labor safety and hygiene; and at the same time, to step by step consolidate and enhance the effectiveness of the labor safety and hygiene inspection system in terms of organizational structure, personnel and professional skills so as to ensure the quality of the inspection and supervision of the observance of the labor protection legislation by production and business establishments;

- Coordinate with the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment in organizing the evaluation of factual foundations regarding measures to ensure the labor safety and hygiene as well as reports on the investment projects' environmental impacts;

- Coordinate with the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor and the concerned ministries and branches in studying and formulating the national program for labor protection, labor safety and hygiene in accordance with Article 95 of the Labor Code; in the immediate future, formulating then submitting to the Government for approval labor protection objectives and plans for the achievement thereof till the year 2000;

- Organize annual reviews and evaluation of the performance of labor protection task, and guide and organize the commendation for good performance of this task.

2. The Ministry of Health shall assume the prime responsibility for studying the amendments and supplements to the labor hygiene standards; elaborate health standards and organize health checks for laborers engaged in heavy, harmful and hazardous work; direct healthcare sections and treatment and rehabilitation establishments in caring and providing periodical health checks, medical treatment and health care for persons engaged in heavy and harmful work and vulnerable to occupational diseases; and at the same time organize and enhance the efficiency of the first-aid activities in cases of labor accidents.

3. The Ministry of the Interior shall continue organizing the implementation of Directive No.237-TTg of April 19, 1996 of the Prime Minister on enhancing fire prevention and fight measures; direct and inspect units engaged in fire and explosion prevention and fight activities, with special attention paid to fire- and/or explosion-prone areas; work out plans for renewal of equipment and means for fire and explosion prevention and fight in order to raise the fire fighting capability and efficiency; and make quick and timely response to any incidents.

4. The Ministry of Finance shall study and allocate the annual labor protection funds to the concerned ministries and branches; and at the same time, inspect and evaluate the efficiency of the use of such funds for the right purposes so as to well performs the tasks defined in this Directive.

The Ministry of Finance shall study the tax exemption and reduction policies, the Ministry of Planning and Investment shall study the policy to provide concessionary credit for enterprises to domestically manufacture the substitutes for imported personal protection facilities, equipment and means, and to help them make efficient investment in the labor protection and improvement of working conditions for laborers.

5. The Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment shall have to intensify investment in the scientific research in the labor safety and hygiene; to direct and organize the revision of the current technical standards on labor safety and hygiene so as to make amendments and supplements thereto and elaborate new technical standards compatible with the modern technological level; to assign scientific projects according to orders placed by the State management agencies in the field of labor protection; to organize the transfer of the results of scientific research in labor protection to the State management agencies engaged in this field for study and application.

6. The Government Commission for Organization and Personnel shall coordinate with the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs and the Ministry of Health in studying the organizational structure and deciding the staff of the labor protection section in the ministries, branches and localities so as to meet the labor protection task in the period of national industrialization and modernization; in the immediate future, efforts should be concentrated on selecting personnel for labor inspection agencies corresponding to the number of local enterprises, so as to ensure the performance of the task of the labor safety and hygiene inspection and supervision.

7. The Ministry of Education and Training shall coordinate with the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs in directing the early preparation of curriculum, textbooks and scientific documents for labor safety and hygiene education in universities, colleges, intermediate vocational training schools; standardize teachers of labor safety and hygiene at all educational levels; and coordinate with the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor in raising the quality of training of labor protection engineers.

8. The People's Committees of the provinces and cities directly under the Central Government shall direct the labor safety and hygiene inspection agencies and fire police to intensify the labor safety and hygiene inspection and supervision as well as fire and explosion prevention and fight in their respective localities, focusing attention on such industries as mining, capital construction, communication and transport as well as the private economic sector; and strictly handle units and individuals that violate the legislation on labor safety and hygiene, and fire and explosion prevention and fight.

9. The mass media agencies at the central and local levels shall open and increase their weekly specialized reports on labor safety and hygiene as well as fire and explosion prevention and fight for the purpose of disseminating legislation, norms, standards and experiences against labor accidents, occupational diseases, fire and explosion, thus helping laborers and employers voluntarily abide by the provisions of labor protection legislation.

10. The directors of enterprises and the owners of production and business establishments shall have to strictly observe the labor protection legislation, work out annual plans for labor protection and appoint officials to take charge of labor protection work, coordinate with the trade union organizations in their enterprises in disseminating, educating and encouraging the laborers to strictly observe the regulations on labor safety and hygiene as well as on fire and explosion prevention and fight; organize networks of labor safety and hygiene personnel and labor accident prevention and fight teams; improve the working conditions, care for the laborers' health and minimize labor accidents, occupational diseases and damage caused by bad working conditions.

11. The Ministry of Justice shall coordinate with the Supreme People's Procuracy and the Supreme People's Court in directing the local People's Courts to promptly try civil and criminal cases in the field of labor safety and hygiene and fire as well as explosion prevention and fight.

The Prime Minister urges the ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies and the heads of the agencies attached to the Government, the presidents of the People's Committees of the provinces and cities directly under the Central Government and local units, within the scope of their respective responsibilities, to closely coordinate with the trade union organizations at the same levels in expeditiously organizing the implementation of this Directive and launching widespread mass movements for ensuring labor safety and hygiene as well as fire and explosion prevention and fight in production and daily life.

The Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs shall regularly oversee, urge and inspect the implementation of this Directive and report once every six months to the Prime Minister thereon.

For the Prime Minister

Deputy Prime Minister

PHAM GIA KHIEM